How to Speak Pirate
"Aye, ain't that the Crow Feet Emblem?!" An older man whispered. Bastian overheard the duo from the next table as he sat with his own drink. A young ebony skinned wizard dressed in a blazer which covered a pink dress shirt and denim pants. Of course his coat exposing the massive dark purple symbol on his neck. But this far from a coincidence. The key to successful reconnaissance? Eavesdropping. Most treasure hunters and thieves tend to take a more violent approach to information gathering. Kidnapping. Burglary. Messy things that often leave behind a trace. Just go to where the people directly involved in the problem gather and listen. Bastian remembered when that hag took him on his first job. He thought they'd be going to some secret criminal den. Surrounded by murderers and killers. Snorting all sorts of drugs and defiling women! Only to sit down at a coffee shop near the center of town. She told him, over a cup of steaming tea, to listen to the world around him. "People like to sit down with their loved ones and complain after a long day of work. And its usually the type of people we hunt that causes them problems. You'll get all the information you need just by shutting up and listening." That lesson lead Bastian, earlier today, to stop by the dock and find a pair of sailors to tail. Following them to a nearby restaurant. They looked tired. As if they'd been at sea all morning. Surely they were looking for somewhere to vent their frustrations. And just like then, his hands cupped a warm mug of hot chocolate with enough whip cream to touch the tip of his nose. His eyes were closed, seemingly enjoying the peace and in a different world entirely. "Trouble's brewing in this town." His friend responded. His voice wavering as his hands shivered. "Ya know that they say a crow flies in murder." "What d'ya think is going on?" The older gentleman asked while sipping his drink. "Think this is about ta Pink Lady? "Has ta be. Several ships go missing. Blood cova tha sea. Body parts washe up at sunrise?" "Damn wizards." The older sailor spat violently. "This town ain't build fa them. We fish. We raise our families. Thas it! Why would tha council even send them of all people. Thieves to dispose of pirates? I'd prefer that Hydra Head group! At least we'd know they' ain't have any ulterior motives! Plus their magic is actuall awesome." Bastian rolled his eyes. "I doubt the council sent them. I heard Crow Feet ain't been part of their organization for years." The man leaned in. "They probly heard information about tha Hargeon Loot and re looking for tha treasure themselves. They ain't nothing more than thieves." "Hmph. Hopefully that pirate bitch and them kill each other. Then this town will be free to sail tha northern route at night." The man chuckled. So much hatred in his voice that it filled him with a false confidence. His eyes foolishly looking to his side. "Not like tha treasa actually exist." Bastian's lowered eyes met their gaze, causing them to nearly jump out of their skin and fall over. Probably hoping that their contact was nothing more than a coincidence. Pink Lady. Bastian noted mentally. He downed the entire mug of hot chocolate and placed a coin on the table. He stood up and approached the table where the older sailor and his junior sat. Their bodies frozen, locked in each others gaze in hopes that the young wizard would simply disappear. And surely their hearts almost exploded when Bastian's hands went into his pocket. A gold cain fell on their table, spinning before landing on tails. Bastian heard their united sigh of relief as he walked towards the door. That was enough information for them. And surely the other two got something just as useful. I just hope that hot-head ain't burn down half the town already. Hargeon was preparing to turn in as the sun started to set. But the streets were still busy with merchants and families hoping to get a last minute sale. Their children running about after school. A calming sight. Maybe in a different world, Bastian would settle down in a place like this with his own family? Not when that treasure is out there, somewhere, unclaimed. The sailors of this town call it Hargeon's Loot. As with most prosperous port cities, Hargeon has had its fair share of pirate invaders and other countries attempting to overstepped their boundaries. Legend has it that somewhere among the seas of Hargeon lies a lone island where a cave sits. A dark cave illuminated by mounds and mounds of treasure! The thought excited him! Finding out the truth of legends often meant endless riches. And more importantly, secrets to magic which have been long forgotten. Money meant a lot. But the chance for him to advance his magical potential was priceless. First hargeon's Loot and then Cockaigne! Drool started to pool at the side of his mouth. A wizard lost in a grandiose dream. A conqueror?! A tyrant?! No. Bastian wanted to own a massive hotel among the clouds. A floating palace for other wizards to relax. A castle independent of borders. Where all who desires to delve into the world of thaumaturgy could gather and share their accomplishments. A truly magnificent spectacle! Bastian's gaze reaching farther than the sea before him as the sun began to set. He snapped out of it and wiped the saliva from his mouth. The others should be here shortly. ---- "What's that boy even doing?" said villagers walking on the docks. Their remarks were towards a young, red-haired man looking out at the sea. The ocean contained great deals of treasure, from its various islands to its briny depths. While such thoughts were on his mind, Uriel was more so listening to those around them. He wasn't here for fun, who would think of a small fishing village as a place to go to for fun? Gah, they aren't talking about anything worthwhile, thought Uriel as he continued gazing at the sea, wanting to remain calm to avoid unwarranted attention. He was an outside, that is the only thing that caught the eye of those around him. Unlike his comrade, his guild mark was not visible due to his clothing. However, Uriel was starting to ponder if maybe it would be a good thing just to get the people talking about whatever riches they feared Crow Feet would steal. Uriel was just about to give up and head back to meet with his team when a few men walked by. "I wonda what them boys are gonna steal. Tha damn Pink Lady bringin' tha wrong kinds of folk to these parts." Steal? They must have spotted one of the others. Uriel stretched out his arms before reach back and placing his hands on his back, pushing forward to pop his back. Walking past the men and away from the docks, moving towards a different area of the sea to find his friends. Yo Ho Ho And A Bottle Of Rum "Moe, Curly, Larry! Get yer asses out here, we've got work to do!" The woman's voice was rough as if she had smoked for years, but she had the smooth country accent of a southern belle, both vocal characteristics that clashed horribly but somehow fit her appearance. A tall, thin, stunningly beautiful woman with wavy black hair and traditional yet girly pirates garb. "Y-y-y-yes ma'am!" The three men saluted their captain as if they were in the army, sweating bullets at her mere presence. "We've been sittin' pretty in the port for a while, eh? I say it's about time to show Hargeon who runs this place." The woman chuckled while the men wiped their brows and let out sighs of relief. They weren't in trouble this time. "WELL WHAT ARE YA WAITIN' FOR! GO!" Big Bertha screamed, the three men, though bigger and older than her, scurried away, jumping off of the ship and onto the dock of Hargeon. Their captain followed. A few Rune Knights stationed in the port town were quick to intervene, meeting the group of pirates, which they recognized as the evil Skull Heart Guild. The leader of the knight group walked in front, clearly very confident of himself. "Aw, looky looky, a warm welcome party!" Bertha exclaimed, another heavy laugh escaping her mouth. The rune knights were not amused. "By order of The Council, you're under arrest!" The man said, a fireball forming in his hand. "Aw, little ol' me? What did I do?" Bertha struck a seductive pose with her mace, hearts formed in the eyes of the knights behind the brave soldier. "Can't we just let her go!" "A get out of jail free card!" "She doesn't deserve prison!" The men began to yell, she had enchanted them with her skinny beauty. The leader, however, wouldn't budge! Instead, he threw it her way. Rearing her mace back, the fire met steel, and... vanished!?!? The man was shocked, and Bertha began to walk closer to him. "Well, I gave you a chance, didn't I?" Bertha swung the mace over her head and brought it down onto the man! Knocking him cleanout. After that, she moved on to his subordinates, who were too lovestruck to even react! Larry, Moe, and Curly cheered their captain on, talking about how amazing, strong, and beautiful she was. Bertha enjoyed this type of flattery, in fact, it was the only reason she recruited them in the first place! "Alright now that those pesky knights have been squashed, let's have some real fun!" Bertha raised her mace as if it was some sort of revolutionary flag, and her underlings ran into town, skipping and hollering, attacking anyone and everyone they saw, looting houses and markets, meanwhile, those that remained on her ship, the pink lady, began to fire cannons and sink other docked ships. Hargeon was in big trouble. Looks like they came to us. Bastian used the pole to lean on, creating a sort of natural disguise. People tend to overlook those who don't seem involved. Sort of one of the many methods that the brain use to filter out information. Bastian watched the whole thing unfurl. In fact, he felt his heart racing when she took her skinny form. Cause boy was she a beauty. He almost joined in the chaos! Where the fuck are the other two!? Bastian thought to himself. He was by no means weak. But charging into a battle like this wasn't the smartest thing to do. Still, the screams of a tortured town made his skin crawl. It brought back memories of his own town being ransacked by bandits. The smell of blood slithering throughout the residences. He'd hid...Maybe if he had the power he possessed now... "They'll have to join up with me later then." Bastian growled. That must be the Pink Lady. Even if I focused on the ship, this town'll be dust by the time I finish destroying it. He gritted his teeth while looking at the woman behind this madness. They can buy another town. A decision. Bastian darted towards the town, weaving through the running crowd. He struck one pirate with a well time kick and punched another. The good thing about pirates? They aren't throwing fireballs and giant blocks of ice around. Meaning he could conserve his magic. "What tha hell!? Who tha fuck are you!" The man screamed from the ground. "He's a member of Crow Feet!" The kicked pirate spat. "We gotta tell da boss!" Bastian took two steps after the fleeing pirate but felt an increase in wind from behind. He jumped over the oncoming assailant, using his head as leverage to kick another. Bastian felt the man's jaw come loose from the force. He then leapt back. Stopping the sword of the previous pirate with a well timed kick to the hilt. Whack! A well timed cross, a straight right, into the man's chin. Sending him soaring backwards. Bastian was unique in the world of magic. Most magicians preferred to sit back and throw their magic around. But Bastian's main thaumaturgical discipline wasn't based on an element or external influence. Bastian wasn't a wizard in the traditional sense of the word. He is a fighter that uses magic. And so, as he returned to his stance, Bastian smirked. Nothing excited him more than a chance to knock some weaklings out. Running to the docks was a group of her weaker pirates, ones she didn't even bother to learn the name of! If they didn't shine her boots with their lips then really what was the point. Still, like many of her other more prominent members, they feared her. "B-b-bad n-n-n-n-n-n--n-n-n-" One of the men stuttered before they were interrupted. "Well, spit it out." Bertha said, a nasty impatient look on her beautiful face. "Crows feet is here!" One of them shouted abruptly, eager to please their queen. "WHAT!?!" Bertha felt her face, the corner of her eyes, it was smoothe! What was he trying to say! Taking her mace she whacked him right off the docks, a long loud scream saying "THE GUILLDDDDDDDDD" could be heard before a big SPLASH! "Well, that makes more sense." Bertha growled. This was going to be a lot more work than she thought! Though the woman didn't know much about the guild, she did know they were treasure hunters, like herself and that was enough for them to be a threat! "Let's let em' know who their messin' with." A smirk appeared on the woman's face, leaping back onto her ship she yelled for her entire crew to charge into town! "Don't forget your magic." Bertha said, opening a giant treasure chest, as pirates ran off The Pink Lady, they grabbed some type of holder magic, whether that was a magic gun or an elemental sword, they were prepared for a real fight. Bertha chose to stay behind, her men could take care of this, and if they couldn't and one of them crows ended up here... well they'd pay for it! Maybe he spoke way too soon. As the approaching pirates, waving swords of fire and shooting bullets that exploded on contact, told him that magic was finally involved. Bastian punched the pirate who he held by his collar once more before charging forward. A stream of intense fire rushed forward. Sandwiched between several buildings, Bastian launched himself into the air and flipped over the inferno. He spun around and twisted his body in an axe kick. Except his leg erupted into that of a giant's. Muscles and veins bulged, seemingly pushing away the second jet of fire. The force of his kick shook the earth. Cracking the buildings around him and sending a handful of pirates crashing. He quickly reverted his leg. Invoking his signature magic on his hand. It shielded him from several exploding bullets before he snapped it forward in an open palm thrust. "Where are they!?" Bastian growled. This sudden increase in firepower meant the woman knew they were here. Making the infiltration part that much harder. A good thing to Bastian. But hearing her mouth about stealth and not leaving traces was worse than death. ---- Walking towards the meetup destination, Uriel heard shots being fired. He let out a sigh, knowing the job likely just became more complicated. That, or someone with friends just really didn't like another townsmen. Uriel knew luck was most likely not on his side in that regard though. Running forward, he saw the enlarged leg of his comrade deflect several bullets. Another volley of bullets was being fired by a new wave of gunners. The bullets were fired, but they quickly disappeared. They were captured in a wall of burning lava, melting down into more lava. "Lava-Make: Wall!" shouted Uriel as he stood back up, having had his hands placed on the ground for the spell. "Sorry I'm late, Bastion. Got caught up at the docks," Uriel said. He looked around the gunners as the lava wall began to fall apart. "Looks like we have been found out. Oh well, easy pickings from the looks of these guys!" Clapping his hands together, red circles formed within the air. From them, a flock of birds formed, all of them taking the shape of a crow. The birds looked almost normal, except for the burning red eyes and streaks of red running through the body. Most of all, of course, was the intense heat they were giving off. "Lava-Make: Murder!" The birds flew forth, burning their molten wings into the barrel of guns for lucky targets. Less fortunate victims were struck by the moving lava creatures in rapid dives. "What did you find out Bastion? Do we know at all who we are up against?" "A bunch of pirates." Bastian yelled over the ensuing madness. Bastian's arm reverted when he saw the wall of molten lava erupt before him. Finally some backup to make this a fair fight. He watched his teammate move with finesse. Always impressed with his destructive magic. Hell, between the three of them, Team Feather is known as the most chaotic team. Other groups of Crow Feet possessed magic ideal for thievery. They could phase through physical obstacles. Hypnotize people. And even change their form to twist into proper positions. But they lacked the success of Team Feather. Since their modus operandi was to utterly destroy their target before raiding their coffers. Bastian busted everyone up. Alexius took all the stuff and Uriel obliterated the traces. Such a noisy operation, other teams often wondered how the three of them managed to still be free let alone still alive! Especially after the incident. The Crow Feet insignia became something of a target. Bastian's arm enlarged during punch. Causing the giant fist to slam against the remaining pirates with explosive force. Sending them soaring and clearing the area completely. Bastian smirked before reverting his signature magic. He turned to Uriel... "But nice of you to finally show up!" He screamed. "How was dinner? Did you meet someone nice? Or are the two of you deciding to take it slow? I mean I hope my inability to quell a pirate invasion by myself didn't mess up ya night." Bastian rolled his eyes. "Oh, you know how it is. She wanted to to meet my parents, I was wishing she was real. The usual," Uriel joked as he extended his arm out. Lava swirled in his hand and began to take the shape of a spear. Throwing the weapon with precision, he skewered one of the pirates. "Stop screaming, the heat should have cauterized the blood vessels." Uriel looked over at Bastion, fighting his way through the pirates. While he could conjure gauntlets or swords with his abilities, which thankfully didn't hurt him, he wasn't much for close-range combat. No, he preferred to stand back and attack from a far. Even better, not attack at all. Why do anything if he can make his familiars do it? However, Uriel would be lying if he said he didn't admire the fighting style and the magic Bastian used. Only thing he wanted more than that was to find a lava dragon or some other being to train him to higher levels of lava magic, but Uriel ignored that desire most of the time. "So pirates? Fun stuff. Now, just conjecture here, since they are pirates, I'm gonna take a shot in the dark and say that ship is probably their base of operations? And based on its horrid color," Uriel said pointing at the pastel pink ship, "that must be the Pink Lady?" Uriel clapped his hands together once again. This time, two large shapes formed next to him. "Alright gorillas, time to go bananas. Get to the ship, but take care not to scorch it yet." The two molten apes pounded their chests and ran into the crowd to beat down and burn the pirates. Uriel walked behind them. "Any idea where Alexius is Bastion? Maybe he scored better than me tonight?" Bertha didn't know where these crews were and honestly she didn't care! As long as her pirates are taking care of business. In fact, she was so incredibly relaxed about the situation she simply sat on the ships deck, painting her nails and staring into a mirror, daydreaming about her own beauty. Eventually, she was interrupted. Her most trusted officers, Larry, Moe, and Curly, came running to report some more news! "Captain! Captain! Ma'am! Ma'am! They're wiping the floor with us!" Now, the term don't shoot the messenger passed through Bertha's mind, but whoever said that anyway? Some old geezer in a pointed hat! "THEN WIPE THE FLOOR WITH THEM! WHAT DID I RECRUIT YA FOR?" Bertha screamed at the top of her lungs, clearly angry. The skinny woman didn't appear that vicious, but the three didn't see it that way! Bowing on their knees they began to worship her or something, as if that was going to make up for it. "Well go after em YOURSELVES." Bertha was just about ready to wack them into tomorrow, but how were they going to fight like that? Frustrated, Bertha returned to her mirror, looking at such a goddess like herself was always therapeutic. Only a few minutes after she had sent her henchman away, gorilla's of lava came stumbling onto the deck! "Well, I don't remember invitin' you folks aboard..." Bertha said, grabbing her mace and standing at the very edge of her ship. Instantly the monkey's leaped up in an attempt to attack but they were met with heavy interference from the Iron Maiden! Bertha's signature weapon, a spiked mace that was able to negate magic! In an instant the monkey's vanished and she knew exactly who was behind it! "Damn, I guess those crows do more than caw." Bertha laughed at her own joke before returning to her mirror. Larry, Moe, and Curly were taking care of this! Marching through the chaotic town, was the three stooges. A team of the Skull Heart guild who acted as Bertha's strongest members, and her most trusted officers. One tall, tanned, aged man with silver hair a strange looking package of cigarettes, another a short, round man wielding a giant fork, and lastly a handsome man with dread locks and a small seed pouch. They talked among each other, laughing at their remarks as they searched for the troublemakers, and turns out they weren't all that hard to find. A few boys roaming threw the city spewing magic left and right? Some thieves they were. "Aye! Aye! Aye!" Each of the three stooges called out, trying to get the groups attention. "Think those shiny feathers'll make a nice coat for Lady Bertha." Curly laughed pounding hist fists together. "And those beaks look awful tasty" Moe licked his lips at the very thought. "Think I'll take the claws." Larry said, blowing a puff of smoke from his mouth. "Would be nice for Alexius to appear now." Bastian said, turning to the three weird men that suddenly appeared before the duo. Of course they'd make some corny jokes about being crows. How original! As if Bastian hadn't heard the same jokes millions of times before. The Crow Feet mage looked to Uriel before taking several steps forward. "Why would you eat a crow's beak?" Bastian responded. "They have no meat and provide zero nutritional value. Its dangerous for both you and the crow." The finely dressed mage. "I'm guessing you guys are with the pirate lady? What business do you have in this town." Farther into the town, a large ebony man strolled down the town streets, moving along the air like a tune blown from a flute, drifting through the streets, watching the people as he made his way to a specified location, seemingly not a care in the world. People watched the man extra close as he strolled throughout town, with every gust of wind a dark purple guild sigil coming into view in the shape of a bird talon, instantly skewing their opinions on the man, pulling their children out of the man’s way, though it didn’t seem to bother him at all as, his eyes were met with a similar looking pair of men further down the street. A peculiar hop in his step became apparent shortly after seeing the man, moving faster and closely approaching the pair before lifting his arms and slamming them on each of their shoulders as to startle the pair. He looked past the duo to see three men in front of them and raised an eyebrow. “Who are they?” Alexius questioned, the only one not assimilated with the tone of the current situation, confused as to the disarray on the streets before them, a 180 from the street he just walked on to get there.